Wednesday: Mission to the Gentiles
Although Jesus spent the major part of His time among the Jews, serving them in their cultural context, He made clear in His teaching and ministry that His mission was universal.
Image © Krieg Barrie from GoodSalt.com
The gospel should be preached to the nations, with Israel as the initial base. The salvation of the Gentiles is part of God’s plan. It was embodied in Jesus’ teaching.
How do the following teachings of Jesus indicate mission to non-Jewish people?
Despite the fact that Jesus ministered mainly among the Jews, there’s no question that from the very start His mission was for the whole world. Right at His baptism, John the Baptist said it clearly: The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said,
(John 1:29, NKJV). The word world (Greek kosmos) occurs about one hundred times in the Gospels. About half of these refer to the worldwide scope of Jesus as the Redeemer.Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
In the parable Jesus told in Luke 14:16-24, those invited made all sorts of excuses for not coming. Read those excuses again. On one level, none appeared unreasonable, did they? What important lesson should we take from this for ourselves?
(25)
It is still felt among some sincere Christians that the nation of Israel is to play a central role in the end time gospel work and they are probably waiting around for this. Scripture testifies otherwise.
Jesus instructed His disciples to go first to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matthew 10:5, 6) and then move beyond (Acts 1:8), in part to get them started where they were comfortable, and to limit opposition from the prejudiced Pharisees until they were more confident in the Spirit.
More specifically the Jews were to get one more chance before their probation closed in AD 34 as the angel Gabriel told Daniel (Daniel 9:24). The sure word of prophecy (2 Peter 1:19) would be fulfilled with unerring accuracy (Luke 14:15-24).
The same prophetic source and word have marked out the course of history and end time events to give the saints of the latter day confidence as they face uncertain times and prepare for the impending conflict of momentous and global proportions (Revelation 13:16, 17).
Prophecy is especially critical to the remnant church (Revelation 12:17; 19:10); for without it is to face a live minefield of deception blindfolded with the sound of a roaring lion in the background (1 Peter 5:8). The thought is paralyzing; for the believers would not know what to do while their faith is severely tested and perhaps shaken (Matthew 24:24).
It is a little late now to ignore prophecy. Probation will soon close for the world as it did with the nation of Israel. The Holy Spirit may shelter the ignorant, but cannot be expected to provide help where opportunity has already been rejected through the sure word of prophecy. Submit to Jesus, keep the Commandments and embrace the prophecies.
Now that we have outlined the steps that need to be taken, for what ever reason is deemed important to ones salvation. Does that give a sense of satisfaction? I would suggest that one might read Matt.7:21-23 and Matt.25:31-46. The great commission Matt.28:18-20 is more than
establishing doctrinal authority.
Project Management:
When you are overwhelmed by the enormity of the task at hand, break it down into manageable sections and tackle them one by one.
Use the talent that the LORD has given you and He will multiply the result.
Think about the story of the emperor and the man who only asked for 1 grain of rice on the first block of the chessboard and for the amount to be double for each of the 64 blocks of the chessboard - how much did he end up with? The emperor agreed, amazed that the man had asked for such a small reward - or so he thought. After a week, his treasurer came back and informed him that the reward would add up to an astronomical sum, far greater than all the rice that could conceivably be produced in many many centuries!
One part of this lesson that touched me most is what is written in Luke 14:10-14.Fellow adventists this bible portion offer both spiritual and literal admonition. 1.let us make humility a watch word. 2.let us recognise the poorer ones in our societies embrace them, help and overlook affluence when dealing with people,lets enjoy equity. 3.let our minds be off earthly rewards in our dealings with people. God on our side we will singing the song of Moses n the Lamb.
The excuses given for not paying attention to the spiritual were scary-- your possessions, your job, your family...sounds too close to home for all of us! Dear Lord, please forgive us and help us see where we truly are in our walk with You.
We should remember that just because we were call by the Holy Spirit to part take in Christ's salvation, there is not guarantee of salvation unless we abide Christ daily. if we neglect to put our salvation work before everything else in our lives we should also be replace. May the Lord help us to fulfill our high calling. Amen
There is no excuse known to man that is good enough to excuse us from taking this gospel to the world. The world is everyone. That's every person on this earth. The color of skin, the country of origin, male or female, child or adult, nothing should be used as an excuse.
No matter how we make excuses there should be nothing that stand in the way of our mission and our salvation to stay stead fast and unmovable when it comes to sharing the gospel and our faith we are to stand firm on the word of God even in these last day. We are not to shrink back to where the darkness cover us in false security and the lawlessness of our live would have sent us straight to hell. Satan gives us false security with lies to rock us to sleep. Be Sober and stay alert know that the coming of our Lord is near. Do not fall asleep as other do or turn back from where God has deliver us from. Spread the news Jesus is Coming Repent and be Baptized.
How foolish it is for us not to except the invitation of Christ which is the New Jerusalem and to live eternity in heaven with him how the children of Israel had so many opportunity to share and have God among them yet they had stiff neck.
1). In our mission to our loved ones, friends, colleagues et al, we surely come across other people group somehow and we should take this opportunity. We all have other people, religious, cultural and philosophical groups when it arises and we should be tactful in our approach and make sure we respect their values but offer the compliments of your missionary beliefs like Esther, Vashti, Moderchai, or Daniel approach.
2). In terms of mission to overseas mission and un-entered territories it is always best to consult the church at large for direction and support.
3). Sometimes it would have to be in your line of work like Daniel in politics, Nehemiah a bartender in an off limit territory or the slave young girl who aided Naaman and many more who were good ambassadors in their line of work outside of church settings or church appointment.
4). Most importantly, prayer and fasting will always be a safety rule and guide with the Holy Ghost conviction.
The invited guests gave lame excuses for refusing the invitations. Each person could have attended the banquet if they had wanted to; instead, they disregarded the importance of the invitation & put other things before God's invitation. They failed to realize that even though God wanted their company, their choice to decline the invitation would be honored & there would come a time when they would forever be barred from God's presence & love.
Shirley DeBeer, your response is not directly related to today's lesson, but it is timely, and I thank you. I have a monumental task before me and you have given me the impetus needed to do the job. I believe your message is God inspire just for me.
Yes, as it was Jesus' mission to bring the message of salvation to this world, it is to be ours to take the message of salvation to this world. We are to offer no excuse but to know He is with us in our endeavor. No one is to be overlooked. Any refusal to hear the word is between the individual and his Maker.
Mary, you are welcome, remember the LORD sends His Holy Spirit to give us the power and ability to do His Will.
Unfortunately, we tend to universalise our Western culture, so don't fully understand the excuses give in the banquet parable, which is why it took me over 50 years to understand it! Understood In the Middle Eastern culture all these excuses were not only weak and obvious lies, they were insulting. The Pharisees were rejecting the offer of eternal life Jesus was offering them and insulting him at every turn. All the parables Jesus told can be understood more fully when you know something of Middle Eastern culture of that time.